The property is found, in Barcelona or on the Catalan coast, the offer is accepted, and the agency has sent a reservation form with a payment request. This article sets out what a buyer's lawyer reads, checks and negotiates between that moment and the signature of the arras contract, on acquisitions above €1 million.
Key points
The reservation form usually fixes the price and the date of the arras contract, and it states what happens to the first payment. It is read before signature, or on the same day if it is already signed.
Under Catalan civil law, a sum handed to the seller counts as confirmatory arras unless the contract expressly states that the arras are penitential (Article 621-8 of the Catalan Civil Code). That wording determines whether a buyer can withdraw, and at what cost.
Where a bank finances part of the price, Article 621-49 of the same Code allows the buyer to withdraw if the named lender refuses the loan within the agreed period. The contract has to mention the financing, and the parties can exclude the rule.
Title, charges, planning status and the match between the Land Registry, the Catastro and the building as it stands are verified before the arras are paid. On a €2 million purchase, that payment typically ranges from €100,000 to €200,000.
The clock starts with the reservation
Above €1 million the sequence moves quickly. Once the offer is accepted, the agency sends a reservation document, often titled reserva or paga y señal, with a first payment due within a day or two. That payment is commonly around 1 percent of the price. The same document sets the date for the arras contract, often ten to fifteen days later.
A reservation is read for what it says, whatever its title. Depending on the wording, it can be a holding deposit that is returned if stated conditions fail, or a binding agreement on price and terms under which the payment already counts as arras. Three points come first: the cases in which the money is returned, the terms of the future arras that are already fixed, and the person who holds the funds.
For the buyer, the days that follow are the window in which the terms can still be shaped. Every check described below is scheduled to finish before the arras are paid.
Reservation
About €20,000
Around 1 percent of the price, due within a day or two of the accepted offer.
Arras contract
€100,000 to €200,000
5 to 10 percent of the price, often ten to fifteen days after the reservation.
Deed of sale
Balance of the price
Paid on signature of the escritura pública at the notary's office.
Transfer tax, second-hand property
About €230,000
Paid on top of the price, self-assessed within the month following the deed.
Indicative orders of magnitude, on the 2026 Catalan scale for second-hand property. The exact figures are confirmed with the tax adviser.
What the arras contract decides in Catalonia
The arras contract is the private agreement signed ahead of the notarial deed of sale (escritura pública). It fixes the price, the completion date and the consequences if one party does not complete.
Where Catalan civil law governs the sale, which is the usual position for property located in Catalonia, the rule sits in Book Six of the Catalan Civil Code, in force since 1 January 2018. Under Article 621-8, money handed by the buyer to the seller is presumed to be confirmatory arras: a part payment that confirms the sale. Penitential arras, which allow either party to withdraw, must be agreed expressly. The buyer who withdraws loses them, and the seller who withdraws returns double. Under Spanish common civil law, the reference is Article 1454 of the Civil Code.
The financing clause
Under Article 621-49, if the contract provides that a credit institution will finance all or part of the price, the buyer may withdraw by documenting, within the agreed period, that the named lender refused the loan, unless the refusal results from the buyer's negligence. The seller then returns the sums received, including penitential arras, and the buyer puts the seller back in the position the seller would have been in without the contract. The parties can agree otherwise, so this clause is read line by line. A buyer who combines a mortgage with other lending will want the contract to describe the financing as it really is.
Arras deposited with a notary
Under Article 621-8(3), penitential arras agreed for a maximum of six months and deposited with a notary can be recorded at the Land Registry, and the property then secures their return. When the arras reach six figures, the option is worth raising with the seller.
Does the contract expressly state that the arras are penitential?
Yes: penitential arras
Either party may withdraw. The buyer who withdraws loses the arras, and the seller who withdraws returns double (Article 621-8).
No: confirmatory arras
The sum is a part payment that confirms the sale (Article 621-8).
In both cases: the financing clause
Where the contract provides for financing by a credit institution and the parties have not excluded the rule, a documented refusal by the named lender, within the agreed period, allows the buyer to withdraw, and the sums paid are returned (Article 621-49).
Ten days, in order
The timetable below is indicative. It compresses or extends with the date set in the reservation document.
| When | What happens | What the buyer receives |
|---|---|---|
Day 0 to 1 | A first call takes place, the conflict check is run and the engagement letter is signed. The reservation document and the listing are read the same day. | The buyer receives a clear view of what is already signed and what remains open. |
Day 1 to 4 | The Land Registry extract is reviewed for title, charges, mortgages and easements. The Catastro record is compared with the registered description, the plans and the property as built, including pools, extensions and outbuildings. Planning status, the cédula de habitabilidad, the technical inspection of the building (ITE) where it applies, community debts and local property tax are checked. The seller's status is checked as well: a non-resident seller triggers a withholding that the buyer applies to the price, and a corporate seller can bring a public pre-emption right into play. | Document requests go to the agent and to the seller's side, each with a date. |
Day 4 to 6 | The findings are assessed against the price and against the buyer's plans for the property. | A short memo states whether to proceed, to proceed with conditions or to stop, and it lists the points worth negotiating. |
Day 6 to 9 | The arras contract is negotiated: the type of arras stated expressly, the financing clause, the conditions tied to the findings, the dates and the holder of the deposit. | The buyer receives a marked-up contract, explained in the buyer's language alongside the Spanish or Catalan text. |
Day 10 | The arras contract is signed and the funds are transferred. The calendar to completion is set: NIE, Spanish bank account, power of attorney where needed, source-of-funds file for the bank and the notary, coordination with lenders. | One timeline and one point of contact carry the file to the notary's office. |
What buyers ask before appointing a property lawyer in Barcelona
Five questions usually come up before a buyer appoints a lawyer on an acquisition above €1 million.
Who leads the file personally?
At PSL Avocat, the lawyer who signs the engagement letter conducts the file from the first call to registration of the deed. That lawyer is a member of the Paris Bar and is registered with the Ilustre Colegio de la Abogacía de Barcelona (ICAB).
When can work start?
A first reply is sent within one business day. Document review starts on signature of the engagement letter.
Can the whole file run in English?
Yes. The file is handled directly in English, French, Spanish or Italian, from the first exchange to completion. Contracts signed in Spanish or Catalan are explained in the buyer's language.
How is the fee set?
The fee is fixed for a defined scope and confirmed in writing before any work starts.
Who speaks to whom?
One point of contact coordinates the agent, the notary, the seller's counsel, the technical architect, the gestoría, the tax adviser and the lending banks. Updates follow the channel and the time zone the buyer prefers. Exchanges with the buyer are covered by the lawyer's duty of professional secrecy.
Questions buyers ask
Is a reservation deposit refundable in Spain?
The answer sits in the wording of the reservation document. Some forms provide for the return of the payment if the seller declines the offer or if named conditions fail. Others treat it as a first instalment of the arras. The document is read before the payment is made.
Can the arras contract depend on my mortgage?
Where Catalan civil law governs the sale, Article 621-49 of the Catalan Civil Code provides for it, on condition that the contract mentions financing by a credit institution and the parties have not excluded the rule. The buyer documents the lender's refusal within the agreed period.
Does the notary check planning and building licences?
The Spanish notary authenticates the deed, checks its legality and the identity and capacity of the parties, and consults the Land Registry before signing. That check comes at completion, after the arras are paid. On the buyer's side, title and charges are checked before the arras, together with planning compliance, licences for pools and extensions, and the match between the Land Registry, the Catastro and the building as it stands.
Can I complete the purchase without travelling to Barcelona?
Yes. A power of attorney signed before a notary, with an apostille where it is signed abroad, allows a representative to sign on the buyer's behalf. The NIE, which is required for completion and for the tax filings, can be requested through a representative as well.
How do I know the price is right?
Price is a matter for the buyer, the agent and, where there is a mortgage, the bank's valuer. Two public references help. The Spanish notaries publish a free portal of average prices drawn from signed deeds, down to postcode level (penotariado.com). Where the Catastro has set a reference value for the property, that value is the minimum taxable base for transfer tax, which matters when a price is agreed below it.
What will the bank and the notary ask about the origin of my funds?
Banks, notaries and lawyers acting on a property purchase are subject to Spanish anti-money-laundering law (Ley 10/2010). Each will ask for identification and for documents that trace the funds, such as sale contracts, bank statements and loan agreements. One file prepared in the first week is the starting point for all three.
Discuss your acquisition
PSL Avocat acts on the buyer's side on acquisitions from 1 to 20 million euros in Barcelona and on the Catalan coast, from Pedralbes and Sarrià to Sitges, Sant Cugat and the Costa Brava. The first exchange takes place in French, English, Spanish or Italian.
Discuss your acquisitionAcquisitions from 1 to 20 million euros · Reply within one business day.
Sources
Ley 3/2017, de 15 de febrero, del libro sexto del Código civil de Cataluña, Articles 621-8 and 621-49, in force since 1 January 2018: BOE-A-2017-2466 (consolidated text).
Código Civil, Article 1454 (Spanish common civil law): BOE-A-1889-4763.
Ley 10/2010, de 28 de abril, de prevención del blanqueo de capitales y de la financiación del terrorismo, Article 2(1): BOE-A-2010-6737.
Real Decreto Legislativo 1/1993, de 24 de septiembre (Transfer Tax Act, consolidated text), Article 10(2), as amended by Ley 11/2021, de 9 de julio, on the Catastro reference value as taxable base for transfer tax: BOE-A-1993-25359.
Real Decreto Legislativo 5/2004, de 5 de marzo (Non-Resident Income Tax Act, consolidated text), Article 25(2) on the withholding applied by the buyer where the seller is non-resident: BOE-A-2004-4527.
Decreto-ley 1/2015, de 24 de marzo, of Catalonia, Article 2(2) on the pre-emption rights of the Generalitat, as added by Decret llei 2/2025, de 25 de febrer: BOE-A-2015-6016.
Consejo General del Notariado, Portal Estadístico del Notariado: penotariado.com.